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4.0 AVERAGE
4.0 AVERAGE
Wow, this book was incredible. A heartbreaking story with many twists and turns that is told so vividly. I couldn't put this book down and I read it in a day and a half. I highly recommend this book.
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
I feel like the reason I liked this book is the reason so many people didn't like this book. I like the complex characters and how they were sort of unlikable. The story is set in world war II with also glimpses of present day. It is said in the champagne region of France. A young couple are running their wine and champagne farm. There's another young couple that also helps run the land. The owners, Michele and Ines married for love but have found marriage harder than you would think. The other couple. Celine and her husband did not marry for love but have lots of knowledge of the land. World war II comes to France and Michelle joins the underground resistance. Inez wants to stay out of it. Celine is part Jewish and is afraid for her life. Michelle and Celine begin to have a relationship and Celine gets pregnant at the same time. Inez starts sleeping with a French collaborator. She also keeps going into town to see her very best friend edit who is married and they own a bar where they overhear important Nazi information. When she tries to break off the relationship, the collaborator gets very angry. Eventually, Inez finds out that Celine and her husband are sleeping together and that the baby is his. On that same night a Nazi comes and tries to rape. Celine and Inez hits him over the head with a bottle of wine. Michelle comes home and takes care of the Nazi. Inez is so upset. She ends up in town drunk and sees her ex the collaborator. She tells him that Celine and her husband are having a baby together and she's very upset by it. He says he will take care of it and that he knows that they're connected to the Nazi who has been found dead. Inez is very upset and doesn't want him to do anything and rush is home to hide. Celine and the baby. The baby is born very early and everyone worries he won't survive. They named the baby. David. And soon after the Nazis come and take Michelle to be killed and Celine to be shipped off to Auschwitz. Celine's husband fleas in anger and inez's left with the baby David. She goes into town and finds her friend edit and gives her David to take care of. She then joins the underground because she feels like she must make up for the death Michele and Celine. Two years later after the war she comes home and finds her friend adeat has died and that her husband lied and said that the person who died was actually Inez to protect himself and David. He asked her to take the baby so she does. She tries to find Celine in hopes that she had made out of Auschwitz, but another survivor says she died. That isn't the truth though and she ends up raising David as her own and he dies at a young age but has a daughter named Liv. Part of the book is told from Liv's point of view in 2019 and she grapples with a failed marriage and infertility. She follows her grandmother back to France where she starts to hear parts of this story. She had no idea that her grandmother had this history. She also finds a man and falls in love. At the end the grandmother takes some sleeping pills cuz she doesn't think she is worthy after all the death she has caused. The very end of the story. Celine is reunited with Liv and introduces yourself as her grandmother. It was a sweet story with lots of twists that made it a little hard to follow. You really don't like Inez much. Pat, she is a character who we can all relate to.
4.5 // I really enjoyed this read. It was sad, but I already knew that since its set in the early 40’s. I liked the back and forth between time frames and that the majority was spent in the past.
I was not a fan of Liv. She just didn’t come off as someone in her early 40’s. I liked her as a 20 something year old- not so much as a 40+ year old. It’s as if she was written as a 25 year old and then the dates didn’t match so just her age was changed.
Other than that.. great read.
I was not a fan of Liv. She just didn’t come off as someone in her early 40’s. I liked her as a 20 something year old- not so much as a 40+ year old. It’s as if she was written as a 25 year old and then the dates didn’t match so just her age was changed.
Other than that.. great read.
hopeful
sad
tense
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Love story
This is not a very historical fiction book, more like a historical romance. Lots of characters who are impulsive and that leads to many issues.
This is not a very historical fiction book, more like a historical romance. Lots of characters who are impulsive and that leads to many issues.
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes